Easterly Investment Partners LLC Has $1.12 Million Holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Easterly Investment Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 27.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,762 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 9,970 shares during the quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $1,123,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of DAL. Ninety One UK Ltd raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1,469.9% in the 1st quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 3,309,020 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $144,273,000 after acquiring an additional 3,098,237 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at about $152,342,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 405.3% during the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,054,285 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $184,784,000 after acquiring an additional 2,449,874 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 66.9% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,915,545 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $257,918,000 after acquiring an additional 2,370,795 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in Delta Air Lines by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,955,818 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $602,327,000 after purchasing an additional 2,254,560 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines

In other news, EVP Peter W. Carter sold 17,550 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.19, for a total value of $1,003,684.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 191,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,948,567.98. This represents a 8.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.96, for a total value of $1,007,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 97,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,456,379.80. This represents a 15.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 98,973 shares of company stock worth $5,541,946. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of DAL stock opened at $56.37 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market cap of $36.80 billion, a PE ratio of 8.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.49. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 12 month low of $34.74 and a 12 month high of $69.98.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 10th. The transportation company reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.09. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.24% and a return on equity of 24.86%. The business had revenue of $15,507,000 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.36 earnings per share. Delta Air Lines’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $0.1875 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Susquehanna Bancshares boosted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $51.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Friday, July 11th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $67.00 price objective on Delta Air Lines and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Delta Air Lines currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.21.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines, Inc provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Airline and Refinery. Its domestic network centered on core hubs in Atlanta, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Detroit, and Salt Lake City, as well as coastal hub positions in Boston, Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK, and Seattle; and international network centered on hubs and market presence in Amsterdam, Bogota, Lima, Mexico City, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Sao Paulo, Seoul-Incheon, and Tokyo.